By Paul White, Agency Director
Plans for a new Tesco Express store in Hull’s King William House development were revealed in the media shortly before the New Year as an application for planning permission was submitted to Hull City Council.
The application of course is still to go through the planning process and be granted permission to proceed, but as the agents managing the commercial development of this key city centre development, we feel this marks a new beginning for this project.
King William House attracted high levels of interest from retailers and leisure operators following the transformation of its exterior and completion of a £6m transformation of its upper floors into high-quality residential apartments.
However, progress predictably stalled when the pandemic struck in March 2020 and businesses began to adapt to trading in a more restricted and uncertain market.
Today, almost two years on, our team at Garness Jones sees levels of commercial activity and investment in Hull similar to levels before the pandemic.
And it is with that that in mind I feel it is significant that Tesco has publicly outlined its ambitions at King William House.
It sends out a clear message of confidence to others that this will be a development where businesses can succeed.
Of course, should Tesco Express be based in King William House, it will bring benefits to other businesses eventually based in the development, as it is a business which attracts large numbers of customers.
The remaining units are available for use as retail, office, bars, cafes and restaurants, all purposes for which Hull City Council has already given its consent, and once again we are having promising discussions with interested parties.
As the building is flexible in terms of its space configuration, units can be designed perfectly to suit a tenant’s need, and so it really does present a great opportunity for those looking to open a new venture in Hull, or enter the city for the first time.
We look forward to pressing on at King William House, a development which will be the latest to help revamp the ‘Old Town’ area of Hull, building upon significant investments in Whitefriargate, Queens Gardens to the continuing development of Hull Marina and the Fruit Market.
King William House offers businesses a great opportunity to contribute to Hull’s growing economy – and benefit from being in an area of the city which is being steadily transformed by investment.
